Goodbye Uber Singapore: Recounting the best (and worst) things about the ridesharing app

#TechThursday

29/3/18 10:00 am

The time has come for us to say goodbye to Uber's highbrow rating system and list of merits

It's official. Grab has acquired Uber in what is said to be its biggest deal made. And while the American transportation network service is still in operations out of Southeast Asia, it's with a heavy heart that we're losing its services here in Singapore.

As we go through the final leg of their rides (until 8 April), here's a tribute to recount the best, and not so awesome parts of our user experience with the app. So long Uber, you'll be sorely missed.

ITS SLEEK INTERFACE

Sticking to a muted colour palette of black, white and grey, Uber always appeared to be the classier choice when it came to its interface. If anything, its slim font made everything easier on the eyes.

What we won't miss: The pin location that was way too confusing to narrow down, especially when you're in a rush to get to somewhere else. Ain't nobody got time to decipher cluttered street lanes.

THE RATING SYSTEM

Uber's rating system made it easy for us to weed out the nasty drivers from the pleasant ones. There's a major difference when you ride in a car that read 4.89 as compared to 4.42. One had bottles of water and free charging points, while the other nearly caused a car accident. Their point system is pretty spot-on, if you ask us.

What we won't miss: Questioning ourselves whenever our own ratings plummeted. Were we late? Could we have smiled more? It was frustrating not knowing why or what we did wrong to deserve a 4.62 rating. That's almost like... failing.

PROMO CODES

The Uber promo codes were fab while it lasted. Of course, so were the ones from Grab. The truth is, we're not entirely sure if that will still happen even after the acquisition. After all, there won't be any need to compete by gifting a more attractive code to users anymore.

What we won't miss: Receiving a notification and having it rejected because its redemption limit was exceeded. Seriously?

PRICE WARS

There used to always be a cheaper option — even when it was peak hour. Now, that might not be the case since Grab is our only option, even with its surge prices.

What we won't miss: Debating with our friends which car service was relatively cheaper. It seems that everyone's experiences with the two varied drastically — and at the end of the day, it was almost impossible to come to a common consensus.

UBEREATS

Losing an option for transport also means we're losing another app for food delivery. Ubereats did cater to some of our favourite restaurants, which even Food Panda and Deliveroo failed to reach.

What we won't miss: Ubereats failing on us, and having to phone their customer service hotline that eventually couldn't offer much to appease our growling stomachs.

From now till 8 April, use Uber's farewell promo SGMRC4B for $5 off 10 rides.